Strand connection device



Jan. 11, 1966 J, M. D] MARTINO STRAND CONNECTION DEVICE Filed March 3, 1964 INVENTOR. (/01 Z M/ f fl/Z/W United States Patent Ofiice 3,228,077 Patented Jan. 11, 1966 3,228,077 STRAND CONNECTION DEVICE John M. Di Martino, 72 Lumur Drive, P.0. Box 482, Sayville, N.Y. Filed Mar. 3, 1964, Ser. No. 348,987 Claims. c1. 24-123 This invention relates to connection devices for strands, such as wire cables, cordage, chains, strapping, etc., and is concerned more particularly with a novel device which is adapted to be attached to the end of a strand and provides means for quickly connecting the strand to a padeye, ring, or like object. The device is of simple inexpensive construction and, when used to connect a strand to a ring, etc., it protects the strand against injury from being bent to sharply and from chafing. As all the advantages of the invention are realized when it is employed with a cable, a form of the device suitable for such use will be illustrated and described for purposes of explanation.

The new device includes a body having a middle section of tubular form, which is adapted to receive and be secured to one end of the strand, and end sections extending away from the longitudinal axis of the middle section in opposite directions and lying in a common plane through the axis. One of the end sections is cut away to form a channel and is curved back upon itself to act as a thimble. The other end section is helically slotted, so that the part of the strand adjacent to the device may be passed through the slot into the interior of the second end section and a loop thus formed at the end of the strand.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference may be made to the accompanying drawing, in which FIG. 1 is a view of the connection device of the in vention in side elevation;

FIG. 2 is a view showing the device in side elevation and in the first stage of connecting a cable, to which it is attached, to a ring;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing the second stage of utilizing the device in connecting the cable to the ring; and

FIG. 4 shows the device when the connection has been completed.

The device in the form shown in FIG. 1 includes a body having a middle section which is tubular and of a diameter such that the end of a strand, on which the device is to be mounted, may be received in the section with a snug fit. The body may be made by forging, machining, or casting and, ordinarily, is made of a suitable metal, although, in some instances, it may be made of a synthetic plastic substance.

The body is provided at its ends with end sections rigidly secured to the middle section and preferably integral therewith, so that the device is of one-piece construction. One of the end sections 11 is bent upon itself through an angle of about 180 so that it lies on one side of the longitudinal axis of the middle section. The end section 11 is of approximately semi-circular cross-section as indicated at 12 to provide a channel opening outwardly and the end section is bisected by a plane through the longitudinal axis of the middle section 10.

The other end section 13 of the body has the form of a. straight tube having its longitudinal axis lying at a low angle, such as an angle of about 30, to the longitudinal axis of the middle section 10. The longitudinal axis of the end section 13 lies in the plane through the longitudinal axis of the middle section bisecting the channel in the section 11 and the section 13 is cut away to form a helical slot 14 extending inward from the outer end of the section and terminating at the adjacent end of the middle section. The outer end of the end section 13 is pre ferably rounded, as indicated at 15, to avoid a sharp point and the inner end of the slot extends across the plane through the longitudinal axis of the middle section bisecting the channel in the section 11. At the inner end of the slot, the section 13 has a beveled outer surface 16 leading inward toward the interior of the section.

In the use of the connection device, it is mounted on the end of a strand, such as the cable 17, by insertion of the cable into the middle section of the body through the end of the middle section adjacent to the end section 11. With the end of the cable in this position and wholly within the middle section, the device is tightly secured to the cable as by deforming the wall of the middle section into tight contact with the cable, as indicated at 10a, by swaging or pressing the wall against the cable, although a set screw or any other suitable means of attaching the device securely to the end of the cable may be employed as desired. The end of the cable with the device attached may then be formed into a loop and held in that position by the device.

In the attachment ofthe cable by means of the device to a ring or link 18 attached to a screweye 19, for example, the end section 13 and the middle section 10 of the device are inserted through the ring until the end section 11 makes contact with the ring. As the middle and end sections are of the same outer diameter, the insertion of the end section 13 and middle section 10 through the ring can be accomplished by a straight line movement without twisting. With the end section 11 engaged with the ring, the device is turned back by bending the cable upon itself and the cable is inserted into the end section 11 through the slot. For this purpose, the cable is passed into the section 14a of the slot at the inner end of the slot and is then bent and moved over the outer end 15 of the section 13 so that the cable enters the sect-ion and extends along the axis of the section. The end of the cable and the device thus cooperate to form a loop extending through the ring 18 and the cable is firmly attached to the ring.

In a connection formed by means of the device as described, the channeled end scction 11 of the device lies between the cable and the ring and thus serves as a thimble which protects the cable against injury by being bent too sharply and also against chafing. The cable extends from the outer end of the channel and through the angled end section 13 and enters the section in contact with the beveled surface 16 rather than against a sharp edge at the inner end of the slot. The formation of the end section 13 with its longitudinal axis lying at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the middle section, as shown, avoids the formation of a sharp angle in the cable at the inner end of the slot 14, where the cable enters the end section, and, since the end sect-ion as a continuation of the middle section is of a diameter holding the cable snugly, the cable is further protected against injury or wear in the end section as a result of movement of flexing.

Whenever it is desired to detach the cable from the ring, the cable is moved out of the slot 14 at the outer end of the end section 13 sufiiciently to clear the rounded end 15 of the end section and is then slipped out of the section through the inner part of the slot 14. The device may then be swung to straighten the cable and may be released from the ring by withdrawing the end section 13 through the ring.

The manner, in which the connecting device is secured to the strand, will depend on the nature of the strand and on Whether the connection is to be temporary or permanent. Thus, if the device is used with a metallic cable, the device can be connected permanently to the cable by deforming the middle section of the body into contact with the cable, so that the device grips the cable firmly, or the device may be soldered or brazed on the cable. A temporary connection can be made by means of a set screw or like clamping means. If the device is to be used with cordage, such as a rope, the device may be secured in place on the cordage by clamping or by mounting the device on the strand and forming an enlargement at the end of the strand beyond the device, as by knotting it. Preferably, the device is of one-piece construction but the middle section of the body may be made separate from the end sections, provided they are rigidly secured to the middle section in the proper orientation described.

I claim:

1. A strand connection device which comprises a body having a middle section in the form of a tube of an internal diameter adapting the section to receive and anchor the end of a strand, with which the device is to be used, with a snug fit and to be secured to the end of the strand, a first section integral with the middle section at one end thereof and curved through an angle of about 180, the curved section having the form of an open channel facing away from the center of curvature of the section, and a second section integral with the middle section at the other end thereof and having the form of a tube, the inner diameter of said second section being substantially of the same diameter as the strand and having a helical slot through its wall extending inwardly from its outer end, the slot having a Width sufiicient to permit passage of the strand, said second section extending from the middle section with the longitudinal axes of the middle and second sections lying at an angle to each other, the longitudinal axis of the second section, if prolonged, passing substantially through the center of the first section.

2. The connection device of claim 1, in which the slot extends to the inner end of the second end section.

3. The connection device of claim 1, in which the middle and second sections are of the same outer diameter.

4. In a strand provided with connection means, a connecting device comprising a body having a middle section having the form of a tube receiving the end of the strand and fixedly mounted thereon, a first section integral with the middle section at one end thereof and curved through an angle of about 180, the curved section having the form of an open channel of a width suitable for receiving the strand and facing away from the center of curvature of the section, and a second section integral with the middle section at the other end thereof and having the form of a tube, the inner diameter of said second section being substantially of the same diameter as the strand, the tubular second section having a helical slot through its Wall extending inward from its outer end and of a Width sufiicient to permit passage of the strand.

5. The strand provided with connection means as defined in claim 4, in which the second section of the connecting device extends from the middle section with the longitudinal axes of the middle and second sections lying at an angle to each other, the longitudinal axis of the second section, if prolonged, passing substantially through the center of the first section.

References Cited by the Examiner WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner.

DONLEY I. STOCKING, Examiner. 

1. A STRAND CONNECTION DEVICE WHICH COMPRISES A BODY HAVING A MIDDLE SECTION IN THE FORM OF A TUBE OF AN INTERNAL DIAMETER ADAPTING THE SECTION TO RECEIVE AND ANCHOR THE END OF A STRAND, WITH WHICH THE DEVICE IS TO BE USED, WITH A SNUG FIT AND TO BE SECURED TO THE END OF THE STRAND, A FIRST SECTION INTEGRAL WITH THE MIDDLE SECTION AT ONE END THEREOF AND CURVED THROUGH AN ANGLE OF ABOUT 180*, THE CURVED SECTION HAVING THE FORM OF AN OPEN CHANNEL FACING AWAY FROM THE CENTER OF CURVATURE OF THE SECTION, AND A SECOND SECTION INTEGRAL WITH THE MIDDEL SECTION AT THE OTHER END THEREOF AND HAVING THE FORM OF A TUBE, THE INNER DIAMETER OF SAID SECOND SECTION BEING SUBSTANTIALLY OF THE SAME DIAMETER AS THE STRAND AND HAVING A HELICAL SLOT THROUGH ITS WALL EXTENDING INWARDLY FROM ITS OUTER END, THE SLOT HAVING A WIDTH SUFFICIENT TO PERMIT PASSAGE OF THE STRAND, SAID SECOND SECTION EXTENDING FROM THE MIDDLE SECTION WITH THE LONGITUDINAL AXES OF THE MIDDLE AND SECOND SECTIONS LYING AT AN ANGLE TO EACH OTHER, THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF THE SECOND SECTION, IF PROLONGED, PASSING SUBSTANTIALLY THROUGH THE CENTER OF THE FIRST SECTION. 